


Reset

by autumntea



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, No pairings - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-14
Updated: 2013-11-16
Packaged: 2017-12-29 09:00:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,179
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1003513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/autumntea/pseuds/autumntea
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When their Captain and his older brother go missing, the Straw Hat Pirates aren't expecting to find them as children. The crew must find a way to revert the two back to normal, but that is something easier said than done.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Discovery

It all started, Nami supposed, when Ace came to visit.

Whenever he did, Luffy tended to be even happier and more energetic than usual; a feat the crew didn't even think possible until they had met the older brother.

Unlike Alabasta, Luffy had managed to convince Ace to spend the night, much too Luffy's utter delight.

They stayed close together and even decided to explore the abandoned island; which mainly seemed to be forest, that they had docked at just minutes before.

"It's fine; I'll watch over him and make sure he doesn't get into anything too dangerous. You don't have to worry." Ace reassured, watching his baby brother dance around while chanting "Pirate lunch box! Pirate lunch box!" with a very fond smile on his lips and a warm expression in his eyes.

Somehow, Nami wasn't completely reassured and neither was Usopp. The navigator and sniper shared a look before turning back to the Whitebeard pirate.

"It's not that we don't trust you,"

"But we're talking about Luffy here."

Ace seemed to find that a little too funny for their liking, but continued to attempt to reassure them. Until Luffy jumped on his brother's back, that is; wrapping his arms tightly around Ace's neck, and urging him to go explore because he had the lunchboxes and there wasn't any time to waste.

"We'll be back in time for lunch!" or so Ace had said, jumping off of the ship railing and walking off into the dense forest, securing Luffy's position on his back.

Really, they shouldn't have let the two brothers set off alone.

Every one knew something was up when Sanji made the lunch calls and Luffy nor Ace appeared.

It was more bizarre than anything, almost scary, because the crew as a whole understood perfectly well that both Luffy and Ace loved food more than anything and that the lunchboxes wouldn't have held off their hunger for long.

"Maybe they got lost and were found by cannibalistic natives." Robin suggested.

"YOU AREN'T HELPING!"

* * *

"Sanji-kun, Chopper, Robin, and Brook will go look for Luffy and Ace, while Franky, Usopp, Zoro, and I will stay on the ship, is that clear?"

"YES, NAMI-SWAN! After we find those shitty idiots I'll make you the most delicious snack from my love!"

"It'll probably taste shitty, then."

"WHAT WAS THAT, MARIMO?!"

"You heard me, Ero-cook."

Nami sighs and drags her hand down her face, intervening before a brawl can break out. "Sanji-kun, can you just go find them?"

"Of course, Nami-dear!" The chef replies, eyes gleaming before turning to Robin. "Robin-chwan, would you like me to carry you?"

"I'm fine, thank you. We'll return as soon as possible."

Nami sighs once more, but this time out of relief. At least she has  _some_  people she can count on.

* * *

"No luck, Chopper?"

The reindeer shakes his head and continues to sniff the air. "They were here but... their scents just disappeared. Almost like... They vanished."

The four Straw Hat pirates keep quiet for a moment; Chopper kicking at the ground, Robin looking into the distance, Sanji lighting another cigarette, and Brook looking up into the trees, worry effectively etched into his face somehow.

"Where do you think they are?" Chopper asks now in walk point, eyes darting around the large forest, reminding him of their time in Skypiea. The reindeer hoped that this wouldn't end up being another situation like that.

"Who knows. Shitty captain gets lost almost as easy as the shitty mosshead." Sanji says, rolling his eyes with flourish.

"Luffy-san! Ace-san!" Brook calls out almost melodically "Where are you? You missed lunch!"

Silence once again greeted the four pirates.

"Let's go in further." Robin says, taking the lead and crossing her arms over her chest, making eyes pop up around areas in the forest.

The deeper they went, there was still no sign of their captain and his brother.

Really, if they hadn't seen it with their own eyes (sans Brook, of course) or if Chopper hadn't smelled them, they would have thought that the two hadn't even entered the forest to begin with. The forest was completely devoid of people, not counting them, and all there seemed to be were the bugs that skittered along.

Robin accepted the hand Sanji extended to her and was pulled up onto the log.

But then Chopper gasps and jumps over the log.

"I...I think I found them! They smell different, but its them!"

The only woman in the group crosses her arms, a small gasp escaping her lips after a moment, her face otherwise calm.

"Its them," Robin wasted no time, jumping off of the log and going in further with Chopper, neither answering Brook or Sanji when they call out for her.

The men easily followed the two who wove through trees expertly at a quick pace before abruptly stopping, nearly causing Brook to run into Sanji.

Robin's eyebrows are furrowed slightly, Sanji curses, and Brook and Chopper cry out in confusion.

In between two trees is an unconscious Ace and Luffy, leaning heavily on one another.

However, the Ace and Luffy before them were clearly not the ones that had left the ship earlier on in the day.

* * *

"So, you're saying that somehow Luffy and Ace managed to get themselves turned into their younger selves."

"We can't be certain until they awake, but yes, that does seem to be what has occurred."

Nami groans and buries her face in her hands, eyes wide with disbelief. If she hadn't seen both figures for herself when they were being carried on deck, she would have dismissed it easily. But she  _had_  seen. "We shouldn't have let them go alone."

The crew sits in the galley, except Chopper, who is tending to their seemingly younger captain and his brother in the infirmary.

"How is it even possible?" Usopp asked, fiddling with his hands nervously. "A devil fruit?"

Robin places her tea cup back in its saucer and looks at the way, as if she can see through Sunny and into the forest.

The group that had gone into the forest had unanimously decided that they needed to bring both brothers back to the ship as quickly as possible, so they hadn't had time at all to explore the forest for whatever had turned the two smaller.

"I'm not sure, but it was certainly something. We'll have to go back to the forest and investigate once they wake up."

An unnatural silence hangs in the air, only to be broken when Zoro grunts and stands up.

"We can't do anything about it now. Don't dwell on it."

Nami scoffs. "Our captain has been turned into a kid and you're telling us not to worry?"

Before Zoro can answer, the door to the galley opens and everyone looks at Chopper standing in the doorway, looking a bit confused and concerned.

"I examined them better; their bodies are at least five years younger than before... I'm not sure about mentally... We'll have to wait until they wake up. They aren't showing any signs of waking up soon, though. Also, theyre both hurt and... They aren't exactly healthy."

"So Luffy and Ace are what... twelve and.. fifteen?"

"Most likely... I-I have no idea how. There isn't any disease or disorder that makes the body younger... I just don't know." Chopper tugs at his hat with his hoofs, hiding teary eyes full of concern.

Sanji walks over in the thick silence that lingers and kneels down, gently removing Chopper's hands from his hat, handing him a glass of tea he had prepared.

"We'll figure it out Chopper. I hate to admit it, but the grass-head said something worth while for once. Worrying and panicking about this isn't going to get us anywhere. We'll find out a way to fix things; don't we usually?" The cook grins at the doctor as reassuringly as he can.

Chopper stares at Sanji before nodding frantically.

The rest of the crew smiles or grins and they all vow to find a way to get their captain and his brother back to normal anyway they can.

Zoro taps Chopper on his hat as he walks past, but the smile on his lips is clear to the others, even if his back is turned.

* * *

Ace is awake before he even realizes it. When he does, he wishes he hadn't because of the soft, comfortable bedding underneath him.

Which is weird in itself because he couldn't remember falling asleep, not to mention falling asleep in a bed. Okay, so maybe him falling asleep at random wasn't weird by now, but still.

Something inside of him tells him that something isn't right and he realizes that he can't hear Luffy. Sleeping or not, his younger brother made sounds at most times. Was Luffy gone? The thought made uneasiness settle in his stomach.

His eyes slowly blink open and he nearly jumps out of his skin, the uneasiness increasing ten fold.

Pristine white walls surround him, medical equipment scattered all around his vision. A desk is at the far corner near a door, where an unfamiliar green-haired man is sitting on the floor, seemingly asleep.

Where was he? Had something happened? And more importantly, where was Luffy?

Ace's last question is answered quickly enough.

Soft almost inaudible, snoring meets his ears and Ace's head snaps in the direction, where he sees Luffy in a small bed next to his; still too big for the rubber boy.

Luffy has bandages wrapped around his head and some on his nose and cheeks, causing a surge of protectiveness to rise because Luffy hadn't been that hurt when he had last seen him and whoever had harmed his little brother had to be dealt with it. His straw hat was on the desk next to the green haired man.

Ace looks back at the green haired man, wary. Had he been the one to hurt Luffy? Faintly he could feel bandages on himself, even registering a little pain.

Already he could tell this man was strong; the three swords at his hip, muscles, and the way he held himself even when sleeping told him so.

Sheets rustle and Ace looks over again to see Luffy squirming under and quickly getting tangled in the covers that cover his small body a little too effectively.

Tense situation or not, Ace's lips cannot help but twitch into a small smile at the sight.

Luffy was such a dork.

Ace waits for Luffy's dark blue eyes to open. The eleven year old blinks sleepily, before he notices Ace, every part of his body lighting up in response.

"Ace! Good morning!" He smiles up at Ace, sitting up. Before Ace can say anything to quiet him, Luffy looks around the unfamiliar room that has the older brother on edge.

"Eh? Where are we? Who're you Ossan?"

Ace's head snaps up, only to see unfamiliar brown eyes watching his every movement.

* * *

"They tried to swing their swords at me, but the king's army was no match for the great Usopp-sama! I defeated all of the forces in under two minutes; including my monologue! The king saw what I had done and he abdicated without further struggle! The civilians decided it was only natural that I be made next king!"

"Wow, really?! All when you were nine?!" Chopper asks, eyes shining in complete awe.

"Never knew that about you, Usopp-bro. That's SUPER!" Franky plays along, sitting on the deck next to Robin's lawn chair, tinkering with a small invention.

Usopp nods wisely, rubbing at his chin. "Mhm, mhm. I'm still the king to this very day."

Robin chuckles as she listens to the snipers tall tale, hands resting on her lap.

Nami sighs quietly, but the fondness on her face is clear as she flips to the next page in the newspaper. Usopp had been the only one able to convince Chopper to take a break and to let Zoro watch over Luffy and Ace.

It had been roughly a day since they had discovered the two brothers in the forest and ever since Chopper had barely left the infirmary. Luckily though, Usopp had caught him right after lunch and dragged him on deck to tell him one of his stories.

"Now, did I ever tell you about the time I-"

A loud crash cuts Usopp off, all members on deck sitting up in alert.

The sound had come from the infirmary.

Chopper is up first, as expected. He switches to walk point and is gone from the deck in two seconds flat. The other four follow without hesitation, dropping everything.

"What's wrong?!" Chopper asks, throwing the door to the infirmary open after switching back to Brain point. He felt as if his heart had jumped all the way to his throat, even if he knew it wasn't medically possible.

The young doctor freezes in the doorway, aware of his nakama skidding to a stop behind him.

In the infirmary, Zoro sits at the doorway, looking calm. He doesn't even bother to look at the group, more focused on the other two in the room.

The two that had previously been sleeping the day away without a sign of waking up.

One of the beds is turned over on its side; explaining the loud crash. Both boys are standing up; the younger looking Ace standing in front of the younger looking Luffy - as if to protect him from them. Luffy is looking at the group with innocent curiousity shining in those familiar, yet different owlish eyes.

In contrast, Ace is looking back and forth from Zoro to them with a glare that could peel paint.

"Who are you?! Where are we?!"

Nami felt something drop in her stomach and a thought that was becoming familiar to her raced through her mind.

They really, really shouldn't have let them go off on their own.


	2. Awake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I... I forgot to post it here.

If they had been lesser people, the crew would have flinched away from the glare Ace was giving them.

The room is silent after Ace asks his questions, the tension growing by the second.

Chopper slowly takes a step closer to the brothers, causing a reaction from Ace. The teen bares his teeth and throws his arms out to pull Luffy closer into him, every inch of his body screaming at them that he was ready to attack if necessary.

"We aren't going to hurt you two," Chopper puts his hoofs up in front of him, trying to assuage the teen's anger.

Ace's glare falters just momentarily at the sight of the talking Tanuki before intensifying.

Luffy gasps in wonder and grasps at the hem of Ace's shirt, tugging at the fabric. "Ace, that Tanuki just talked! Do you think we can eat it?!"

"I'M A REINDEER NOT A TANUKI! AND YOU CAN'T EAT ME!" Chopper realizes that he shouldn't have yelled after the fact and covers his mouth with his hooves as Ace looks absolutely primal.

Wisely, Robin decides its time to step in. She walks closer, standing next to Chopper; her face calm and expressionless. Ace's eyes follow her every move.

"You're on the Thousand Sunny: our ship. We are the Straw Hat pirates, our captain is Monkey D. Luffy."

"Eh?" Their smaller captain cuts in, wide eyes blinking. Ace looks taken back. "But I'm not a captain yet."

"That's because, for reasons we are not aware of, you two were changed into children when you went into the forest. We found you two as you were and brought you back on board."

"Oh," Luffy blinks and smiles up at Robin. "Okay!"

It seemed to be that their captain didn't change a bit with age, causing certain members of the crew to sigh or shake their heads with fondness.

Ace, however, clearly changed a lot since he was a child.

"That's bullshit!" Ace seeths. "Just because he'll believe everything under the sun doesn't mean I will!"

"It's the truth." Zoro speaks up, eyes boring into Ace's, causing a reaction in the silent seconds that go by.

Somehow, something in the never blinking gaze had managed to convince Ace of  _something._

They can all see that Ace still doesn't believe them, but he's at least reluctantly willing to listen to them.

"Follow us and we'll explain everything we know." Nami reassures.

Ace is still tense and has a wary look in his eye, but he nods and grasps Luffy's wrist tight, who doesn't seem to mind in the slightest.

"Hey, do you have food?" He asks Chopper, who is closest to him in height. Really, no one expected their captain to be so  _short_  when he was younger.

The reindeer is about to answer, when the last two members of the crew decide to show up.

* * *

Sanji had been in the middle of making today's dinner when he hears a loud crash from the infirmary.

The blond chef jumps at the sudden sound and is automatically alert. He's about to run out of the kitchen when the oven dings.

Sanji curses lowly and hurries to turn the oven off; not wanting to waste food by letting the three pastries burn. He turns the oven off and takes the pastries, placing them on the counter.

The cook reaches for the door that opens up a small passage to the sick bay. Without hesitation, he slams the door to the sick bay open.

Sanji is greeted with the sight of his crew, plus his younger captain and his brother, as he expected. The only difference, however, was that the two smaller boys were now awake and on their feet.

Luffy stands a few feet away from Sanji - next to his brother and across from Chopper. He's much smaller than before; not that he was the tallest guy around in the first place. His clothes are ones they had borrowed from Chopper, bandaids peeking out of the clothing. He still has the small scar under his eye and the straw hat planted on his head, looking much bigger than ever before and like it was going to slide over his eyes any second.

Wide blue eyes blink and look up at Sanji before his body is pulled back and a younger Ace comes into view.

The younger freckled teen glares at Sanji sharply and holds his little brother closer to him, eyes darting back to the rest of the crew momentarily.

"How many more of there are you?" He bites out, face stony.

Nami puts her hands up in attempt to assuage Ace's temper. "Just one more person. None of us will hurt you, we just have to talk to-"

Brook decided that it would be a perfect time to pop up from behind Franky.

"Is everything okay, I heard a noise- AH! Luffy-san, Ace-san! You're awake!"

Almost on cue, both of the boys' mouths fall open at the site of the living skeleton. Luffy's eyes get that familiar sparkle in them and before Brook can say anything else, the young boy grabs Ace's shoulders and starts bouncing in place.

"Ace! Ace look! It's a skeleton! He's moving and talking! That's so cool! Hi Skeleton-ossan!"

Ace seems to be thinking something similar, because he looks at Brook with confusion and awe, the only non-guarded look on his face so far. The guarded expression quickly comes back, however.

"Yohohoho, good afternoon Luffy-san! How are you today? Would you like some music?"

Luffy smiles and looks like he's going to answer, when Ace sends him a /look/ and he closes his mouth with a pout. Robin takes that as a sign to intervene.

"Follow us onto the deck and we'll explain everything we can."

Franky, Usopp, and Brook take that as their cue to start backing up from the doorway, making their way to the deck. Nami and Chopper follow, while Robin smiles at the two boys, silently beckoning them forward. Ace and Luffy follow Nami and Chopper out hand in hand with Robin following them.

Zoro stands up and shares a look with Sanji, who rolls his eyes after a moment and exits back into the kitchen. Last in the room, Zoro follows the rest of the crew, closing the door behind him.

* * *

"...So," Ace starts after everything is explained to him. "The two of us are now seven years into the future and none of you have any idea how?"

Ace, Luffy, and most of the straw hat crew all sit on the deck, Sanji being the only one absent due to dinner being prepared.

Nami, Robin, and Chopper had explained the situation to the best of their ability, while Zoro, Usopp, Franky, and Brook would stay quiet for the most part, commenting on something when they saw fit.

"That's everything that we know." Robin says calmly.

Luffy tugs at the sleeve of his brother's shirt once to grab his attention. "Ace,they're telling the truth, I can tell! That's so cool! Hey, am I the Pirate King yet?"

Ace's jaw locks, knowing that Luffy could tell when someone was lying or not for the most part by now, despite knowing how gullible the boy could be a lot of the time.

But what if this really was just another time Luffy's gullibility decided to shine through?

Ace didn't trust these people. The story they had told was absolutely insane, something that only Luffy could believe.

Quietly, the fifteen year old began hatching a silent plan to himself.

* * *

After dinner, it was clear that both boys were still rather tired, especially when Luffy swallowed the last bit of his dessert and slumped in his chair, snoring away.

Chopper explained that to the crew that their bodies were still recuperating from whatever they had gone through.

Ace had picked Luffy up easily, glaring at the members of the crew who offered to carry Luffy for him in case his injuries were hurting him.

Before dinner, Nami had given the boys each a new set of clothes to wear; Ace was given one of Usopp's bright yellow shirts and dark shorts that fit him well enough, while Luffy was given his own blue shirt - or so they claimed- with an odd design on it and red shorts from Chopper that were nearly hidden underneath the shirt that almost covered his bony knees completely.

Franky had shown the two boys to the men's cabin and guided them to the hammock bunk beds.

Ace protested furiously when Franky scooped the boys up in his large hands and placed them on a top bunk.

"You little bros need a SUPER rest!" The odd blue haired man started, easily dodging the kick Ace sent his way. "Tomorrow we'll probably go into the forest! Good night!"

Ace watches Franky leave the cabin and looks at his younger brother, who sleeps away peacefully.

Idiot never really knew when to be catious, did he?

Something had been odd about that blue haired guy. The speedo was one thing, the fact that his hands were hard like metal was another.

And he wasn't even the weirdest member of this crew, that position going to the skeleton. (Or Luffy, if this really was his future crew.)

He lays down next to Luffy, fully intending to not fall asleep. However, the young boy automatically cuddles against Ace, throwing his arm around Ace's torso and hugging him close. The familiar warmth quickly makes Ace realize how tired he really is and he's out before he knows it.

* * *

Brown eyes open a few hours later and Ace yawns.

The first thing he sees is Luffy, who he has an arm around.

He hears Luffy's familiar soft snores, but soon his register others and quickly he remembers the situation the two of them were in and his plan.

A plan that he had nearly ruined.

Ace sits up carefully and looks over to the other bunks. Everyone is sleeping in their bunks, except for one. The skeleton - Brook, his mind reminds him - is not in a bunk.

Did living skeletons even need to sleep?

Brook had eaten dinner earlier that night, so maybe he actually did.

That however didn't explain where he was.

They're pirates, so maybe he's on watch? He thinks. They would have to be much more careful then.

Ace turns to Luffy and shakes him until he wake.

Dark blue eyes open slowly and Luffy groans sleepily, turning around to face Ace.

His older brother quickly puts a finger to Luffy's lips and his own when he sees Luffy trying to speak. Silently, he gestures to Luffy to follow him.

Skillfully, he climbs down from the bunk with little sound. Luffy noticeably makes more sound after making sure he has his hat, but it doesn't have much effect on the still sleeping crew.

Ace notices their shoes next to Usopp's bunk and hands Luffy's sandals to the boy, grabbing his own, and taking Luffy's hand and silently guides his younger brother out of the cabin.

When they're alone, Luffy speaks up, still sounding sleepy.

"Ace? What are we doing?"

Ace grins at his little brother.

"We're leaving this ship."

**Author's Note:**

> A new story! I'm really excited to be posting this! Any feedback is appreciated!


End file.
